Church's Easter Fest has thousands of eggs, on land and from the air

Standard-Times file Easter eggs litter the fields of the Texas Bank Sports Complex for last year’s TLC Easter Fest. More than 150,000 eggs will be dropped for kids to find at the 13th annual event Saturday.

What: TLC Easter Fest

When: Noon Saturday

Where: Texas Bank Sports Complex, Rio Concho and Bell streets

Cost: Free

If 150,000-plus plastic, prize-yielding eggs strewn across six playing fields don't qualify Tree of Life Church's Easter Fest as the state's largest egg hunt, perhaps helicopters dropping thousands of marshmallow-filled candy eggs give it the edge.

Whether this year's event is the biggest or best isn't the concern, said TLC's special events coordinator, Kat Rowoldt. Rather, the aim is that no child leave with an empty basket and no family go home without experiencing the joy of the Easter celebration.

For many families the fest is a tradition, and each year thousands attend. Saturday marks the event's 13th year, and it has grown exponentially, Rowoldt said.

"May it continue to do so," she said.

The egg hunt begins at noon Saturday at the Texas Bank Sports Complex, but Rowoldt said serious egg finders would do well to arrive at 11 a.m., claim a free hot dog, check out their surroundings and find the field for their respective age groups.

Age divisions are infant to 2, 3 and 4, 5 and 6 and so on through 11 and 12. This year, Rowoldt said, a field will be available for special-needs egg finders ages 2 through 98.

Finders should bring their own baskets, and Rowoldt said she guarantees all who seek shall find.

A huge part of the fun-for-all is the helicopter candy drop. The helicopter will make two or three passes over each field to make sure an ample amount of candy eggs are released.

After the candy drop, emcee Mike Levesque will give a 10-to-go countdown.

"We have a red-and-green flag," Rowoldt said, "and at noon, when it's time for the hunt to begin, that green flag goes on top and then — oh my goodness — the kids pour onto the fields and get the eggs," Rowoldt said. "It's a tremendous amount of fun."

Multiple activities are planned for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., including bounce houses, face painting, airbrush tattoos, rock wall climbing and, new this year, a small train children can ride.

At 2 p.m. the activities shut down, Rowoldt said.

"At that time, we want everyone to head to the stage for an Easter message, to hear what Easter is about," she said. "Following the message, we will have prize giveaways, and this year we have an incredible number of very great prizes — a boys and girls bicycle, some gaming systems, some really nice things."